


Stay In My Memory

by Kairi_Yajuu



Category: Tales of the Abyss
Genre: Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Gen, Not a ship, really not a ship, trust me you don't want to ship her with anybody let alone Sync
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-31
Updated: 2019-06-03
Packaged: 2020-03-30 21:36:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,528
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19036045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kairi_Yajuu/pseuds/Kairi_Yajuu
Summary: Medley, a creature of sorts as she prefers to be described, meets a human and, upon describing what she is, is asked to keep it hidden from the world for the time being. She plays along with this humans plan and becomes his partner, trusting in his promise for her to be worshiped above what she calls her "counterpart". She helps him with her skills to create replicas and as one of the failed attempts in a difficult setting catches her eye, she decides to keep it as a pet."Medley sent a glare to the grinning pink-haired man who started this before sighing and hopping down from his chair. She walked over to the replica in question and, standing in front of it, grinned wide. “Van.” she said. “Let me keep this one.” All of them looked confused. What was she thinking? They were probably just as lost as she was. At this point, she was letting her instincts guide her and her instincts said that this one deserved mercy. That this one had some use left in him yet."





	1. A New Pet

Medley stared incredulously at the man in front of her. The man who called himself ‘Van’.

He knelt down before her so as to speak closer to her level. The man wore what looked to be a complicated uniform more than anything comfortable. “Why look at me like that? I believe you, after all. Is that so hard for you to swallow?”

“Well.” Medley smirked. This human knew his place, but perhaps not well enough. “You have me listening. How would you manage to make the people worship me instead of my counterpart?”

The bearded man smiled and stood up. “It will be no easy task. But we will manage it, I’m sure. With my place in the Oracle Knights to the Order of Lorelei, we can change this world for your fitting.”

She turned from him and let her wings be visible. This was to make a show of taking off. She could possess any form she wanted, she just chose this form of a kitox with wings that could be made invisible for a simpler existence in this world. The blue and pink fur with red eyes were just random colors that meant nothing to her. As a human, too many questions would be asked of her yet as a docile monster that looked close enough to a weirdly colored cat, she was left to her own devices. Not to be taken in as a pet, not to be chased out and killed and not to be stuck anywhere that only feet could travel. A free spirit. A simpler existence.

“And how, pray tell, are you planning to make that happen?”

“I have my ways.”

Medley was shocked by his confidence. She told him who she was. Yet still he masterminded a game of secrets. “Very well.” she answered him. “I’ll play along.” she put her wings away and turned once more to face him. “Call me ‘Medley’.”

“Medley? That doesn’t seem very fitting.”

“Oh? And what do you suggest?”

“Tactur seems more fitting.”

Medley stared with the same look she had when he first said ‘okay’ to her description of who she was. “Are you serious? I’m a female, you know. Plus, I see the pun you’re trying, and I think it’s far too obvious.” Yes, the word ‘taciturn’ was too obvious.

Chapter One: A New Pet

She poked at their new creation. Van and Medley worked hard on this one and it seemed to have worked wonderfully. “We sure he’s alive?” she finally asked. It wouldn’t have been the first time a stillborn replica entered the picture. They had tried and tried and tried again and again and again and failed every time. Why should this time be any different?

“Patience, Medley.”

“Oh - poo patience. Your plan is looking to be more and more complicated. Too complicated. FAR too complicated! When are you going to give me what I came down here for?”

“Medley, look, it breathes.”

Suddenly Medley turned to look back at the… thing they had created. Van was right. It WAS breathing. “Oh cool. It’s breathing. So does that make it a success?”

Van then let out a devilish grin. One Medley wasn’t quite sure she was comfortable with. Sure, kidnapping Luke didn’t seem like a good thing to do but she was still convinced they were doing the right thing in the end. This whole plan was to give her something to do that would be worth all of Auldrant worshiping. So it HAD to be something good and just, right?

“Master… Van..” Luke weakly called out.

Medley flew up to where the original was laid at the top of the machine. “I think we hurt Luke, again. Van, are you sure this is an okay thing to do?”

Van walked up to where he could see the red-head. “His name will no longer be Luke.”

“Yeah, what, you gonna put the replica at the manor and tell them it’s Luke?”

“Precisely.” Medley’s eyes grew wide. She wasn’t told all this. What would happen to Luke - to the original? “I can see your worry from here, Medley. Do not fear. We’ll take care of the original. But first, we have to let him in on our plan and he has to accept it.”

“And what if he doesn’t?”

“He will.”

Just then, the original called out again. His breathing was slowly settling back down to normal.

So Medley turned towards him and sighed. “Alright Van. Just… don’t hurt him any more than you have to, okay? I’m getting kinda fond of him.”

“Of course.”

~!~

Medley was left alone at Choral Castle with the prisoner. The original. The one Van refused to call by his true name. When she heard him stir in his cell, she smiled and walked to the edge. “Hey, you’re awa - HEY!”

He threw his glass of water at her. She ducked just in time to avoid it and to hear the crash of glass against the run-down castle’s walls. She glared towards the boy. “Quite a feisty one aren’t you, boy?” He returned the glare with equal force. “Watch yourself. I could kill you any moment.” She quietly left out the part that no matter what happened she would never do such a thing. For several reasons beyond her morals, that is.

When she saw him tense she smirked. That was better. But then her gaze softened as she thought about all that he was going to go through.

“You feel sorry for me, don’t you?”

Now it was Medley’s turn to tense. “So what if I do? You’re worth feeling sorry for.”

He curled up into a ball and sat at the opposite end of the cage. Medley really did find this to be a tortuous fate but… “Van says this is all for the greater good. You’ll see! You’ll be a hero!”

“No.”

Medley froze. No? Why wouldn’t he want to be a hero? That’s what she was after. The whole reason she went along with this cruelty was for that goal.

“What do you mean ‘no’? Don’t you want to be a hero? Isn’t that a great goal to have?”

“I want to go home.”

Medley stared at the ground and then mumbled. “What’s so great about ‘home’?” she then sighed and laid down. “Well, boy, you’re here now. And don’t you trust your master? He’ll take care of everything, I promise you that.” Yes, she knew he would. She was still on her guard, don’t get it wrong, but she trusted Van all the same.

~!~

Years passed and the boy grew up pretty well. He joined what was called the “God Generals”. Along with Dist the Reaper, Legretta the Quick and Largo the Black Lion, Asch the Bloody worked under Van. At only fifteen he was such a high ranking official. It was great for him. 'There’s no way he could be upset now!' Medley thought to herself. Yet still, he always looked angry. She watched the boy these past five years and felt, while they weren’t all that close, they were closer than the others.

Sitting in the lap of Dist as he sat on his chair, Medley appreciated a nap. Dist for some reason found this image of him petting a young monster that closely resembled a cat menacing. He felt it looked glorious enough for him. In his own words “someone as fabulous as me should always have a creature of some sorts in his arms!”. Hah. A creature of sorts. Sure. It wasn’t wrong but it wasn’t right in the way he meant it.

They sat at Choral Castle waiting for Van and as Van entered the room, she yawned and stretched, making a point of scratching her claws into Dists legs. Just to keep him on his toes.

“Ow! Why you little monster I’ll - “

“You’ll what, Dist?” Van was standing in the doorway.

“Oh Van. Wonderful to see you’ve returned. Now why have you called us here?” Van carried a boy in his arms and behind him was who Medley recognized as the Grand Maestro. Knowing her place, she kept quiet, kept her wings hidden, hopped down from Dists chair and wandered towards Van with curiosity in her eyes.

“It’s okay, Medley. You can reveal your true self to the Grand Maestro. We’re going to need your power.”

Medley frowned. Really? After Van explicitly told her to keep it secret from all but him, suddenly she was to reveal the truth to not just Dist, but to Mohs as well?

Seeing her discomfort, Van smiled. It was still not a comforting smile. It was his devious one.

“It’s alright. We just need to borrow your skills to create a replica.”

Ah. So that’s what this was about. Making replicas. So long as that’s all that was happening, she needn’t reveal more than what she already had to Dist. The reveal that she was a master of fomicry.

She revealed her wings and flew up to get a closer look. “I take it we’re replicating whoever you have in your arms right now.”

Mohs grew shocked and took a step away from the scene, his eyes wide. “It flew!”

Medley glared at Mohs and barred her teeth. “That’s ‘she’ to you, buddy. “SHE flew! Not it”.

“You told me it could speak, Van, but not that it - ah - she could fly!”

Van nodded his head as if agreeing to what Mohs had stated. “Yes, she’s a remarkable creature.”

Medley simply rolled her eyes before drawing her attention back to the boy in Vans arms. She stared at the green hair and pale complexion as she mumbled a quiet “creature indeed.” Her eyes suddenly grew wide as she remembered where she had heard this description of this boy before. And why he would need to be replicated. And why Mohs would need to be aware of the process.

“This is… the Fon Master, isn’t it? And not only that, he’s sick. Real bad. This could even be his death bed.”

Once more, Van nodded, walking on with Ion to the fomicry machine and setting him in that spot Van laid Asch at five years ago.

Dist finally spoke up from his spot hovering by the top of the fomicry machine in his chair. “Why do we need the help of that monster? Surely we can manage without her.”

Van sent a glance to Dist and opened his mouth as though to answer but before he could, he was interrupted by Mohs. “Yes, Van, I fail to see the point of including more than absolutely necessary.”

Waiting for the appropriate pause, Van answered both of their worries. “Medley is a trusted member of my team. She is my partner and her knowledge combined with Dist is exactly what we need to pull this off.”

What Van didn’t tell them was that the only reason they were able to create perfect replicas was because of her. She wasn’t magic, she couldn’t do it just right the first time, but after a few tries she could do it. “A few painful tries.” she spoke aloud.

Dist was getting huffy. 'Good' Medley thought to herself. He needed the reminder every now and again that he was useless without her. She didn’t understand seventh fonons as well as Dist so she, technically, needed him too. As annoyed as she was to admit it. But he didn't know her secret touch that she refused to reveal and he may be just as annoyed to admit it, but it was the truth.

“Come along, Dist.” Medley called out. Treating him like a child. Well, compared to her, everyone was a child. She flew back down on top of the control mechanism and waited patiently for Dist to turn it on.

The first was stillborn.

The second couldn’t open its eyes.

The third was pretty okay but possessed none of the originals powers.

“This is difficult.” Medley finally said, staring at the third and latest attempt as it looked around blankly. Dist had created a system of giving the replicas special instructions shortly after their birth. Sort of like a code for a fon-machine. So when the third didn’t fulfil the request of performing a Daathic Fonic Arte, they assumed it couldn’t. Medley wondered why it was so difficult. She could’ve sworn they’d gotten better.

'Ah, that’s right.' She thought to herself. 'The original is dying.'

Dist spoke, echoing Medley’s thoughts as though he could read her mind. “His fonons are falling apart so it only makes sense that we wouldn’t be able to make an exact copy.”

Now it was Medley’s turn to get huffy. That didn’t seem fair to her at all. SHE created Luke, after all. She could create a replica of the Fon Master. “Try again.” She said, looking to her latest changes to the formula.

Dist let out a sigh and shrugged before putting in the instructions to begin the process once more.

This one awoke and immediately performed a Daathic Fonic Arte, albeit it was a much weaker version of the arte. Medley grinned wide, her tail switching sides behind her.

Mohs glared at her and Dist. “Again! This one isn’t strong enough.”

Medley’s grin dropped at that. Not strong enough? That didn’t seem fair. Surely he was strong enough to complete the tasks needed of him. Still, she let out a nod and went to work with Dist to change things around.

“Medley…” the faux monster froze. Did it just… ?

“Did it just call my name?”

“Oh-ho-ho~!” Dist laughed. “It’s even more hilarious than I thought! You look as though you’ve seen a ghost, Medley!”

Oh. She knew exactly where this was going. Dist The Jerk, had wasted part of the formula on making the replica call her name. Before she could berate him on wasting everyone’s time, Van beat her to it.

“Dist. We are not here to play games.”

Dist waved his hand in the air. “Yes, yes, of course.”

Medley growled and was about to yell when, again, the replica said her name. She felt a shiver run through her. Suddenly, this whole endeavor felt wrong. Very wrong. So wrong, it made her sick to her stomach. As Van moved that failure to the side with the others, Medley tried to ignore its cries for her. Tried yet failed on numerous accounts.

The fifth one was, once again, too weak for Mohs’ liking. Though it was stronger than the one who called her name. Before they could continue, though, Medley had to stop everything. “Wait.” she said. Flying up to the original she sighed and looked to Mohs and Van. “He’s dead. I can’t help anymore.”

Mohs grew angry at that revelation. “What do you mean you can’t help anymore? The Necromancer would bring back the dead all the time in his experiments!”

“Hey - “ Medley interjected, “if you think you can bring a full powered replica from a dead man, be my guest. If you recall, all The Necromancer’s attempts on creating replicas from only replica data ended in failure. Luke was - “

“That’s enough Medley.” She stopped dead in her tracks. Van didn’t want Asch’s origin revealed? Seemed fishy to her but she simply shrugged and let it go. She landed on the top of Dists chair and as she laid there, he floated up to where they could inspect the latest creation. “He will have to do.” Van continued. “Have the rest brought to Mt. Roneal.”

Before anyone else could say a thing, the fourth replica once again spoke. “Medley.”

Medley sent a glare to the grinning pink-haired man who started this before sighing and hopping down from his chair. She walked over to the replica in question and, standing in front of it, grinned wide. “Van.” she said. “Let me keep this one.” All of them looked confused. What was she thinking? They were probably just as lost as she was. At this point, she was letting her instincts guide her and her instincts said that this one deserved mercy. That this one had some use left in him yet.

“Very well.”

“Van!” Mohs interjected but before he could finish his complaint, Van spoke again.

“After all she’s done for us, I believe Medley has earned the right to a reward.”

A reward. Yes. That’s what this was. “I want a pet. That’s all.” That’s what she told herself as well as the others. Though somewhere deep inside she knew that it was out of pity that she wanted him to live.

~!~

Two years passed since then and Sync, the fourth replica of Ion, had grown quite quickly. According to Van, he grew much faster than the Luke replica did. Everyone but Arietta the Wild - the newest addition to their little group - knew his story though no one spoke of it. Everyone here respected each others boundaries and Medley enjoyed that.

They sat together at a table to eat, hidden away from the rest of the Oracle Knights. Except for Dist. He seemed to be growing an attachment to one named “Anise” and chose to eat with her instead. Medley was sure he was just desperate for attention. The brat. Unable to reach her food from the chair - she refused to sit on the floor and eat like a dog - Medley sat on the table next to Sync’s spot. Arietta sat across from them next to Legretta. Largo and Asch where on opposing ends of the table. Currently, Van was in Baticul.

Because everyone respected boundaries, though, the air was suffocatingly quiet. That was, until Arietta spoke up. “Um. Medley, why are you working with Van? Why aren’t you free?”

Medley smiled at the child and shut her eyes. “It’s my secret. For now, I suppose the answer of ‘curiosity’ will suffice?” She opened her eyes and narrowed them at her while keeping that same smile. “And besides that, who says I’m not free?”

Arietta tensed and looked down. “It’s just… I’ve never heard of a monster willingly helping humans.”

“Well, you’ve also never heard of a monster that can speak the human language, have you?”

“But Arietta can speak the human language.” She answered quickly. At that, Sync laughed to himself.

“Barely.”

Arietta tensed again. “That’s not funny, Sync! I’m doing my best! Ion taught me a lot before…”

“Before he abandoned you.” was Sync’s response, a smirk growing on his face.

Medley simply set a paw on Sync’s shoulder. This made him tense and then scoff. Medley smirked. Sync knew his place well. No one else knew this, but Sync was under Medleys jurisdiction, not Vans. She just happened to have the same goals as Van so they let everyone call him a God General. Reality was, Van kept his promise to her. Sync was her pet and he knew that. And no, the irony of a kitox having a human for a pet was not lost on her.

Asch spoke up next. “You would know a lot about being abandoned, wouldn’t you, Sync?”

Medley had noticed that Asch had picked up a sort of big-brother role for Arietta. Probably caring for someone else was a distraction from his own pains. Much like how Sync’s harsh teasing of all the others was his own distraction.

“As would you, I assume.” Sync replied quickly.

Medley finished her latest bite of curry and stuck her tongue out. “Spicy.” Was she talking about the back and forth between Sync and Asch or the food? No one would know but her and that was her secret.

Asch slammed his hand on the table and stood. “I’m excusing myself from the table.” and with that he was off. Off to train no doubt. This happened often enough that Medley knew what would come next. The God-Generals may work together but ‘close’ is not the terminology Medley would use for them. Asch seemed especially distant from all of them. Big-brother role or not, he never really talked with Arietta. He was just protective of her when they were together was all it came across as. If anything, Largo took on the role of being a father-figure to Arietta and was much closer to her. Still, ‘close’ was a strong word even for their relationship.

Legretta let out a sigh. “Sync, must you be so harsh?”

Sync huffed and began to eat again without another word. Though after a bite, a smirk was shown on his face. Oh yeah, as always, he was proud of himself for setting Asch off. Not that it was a difficult task. Asch did always look angry, after all. But Medley just brushed it off. If it made him happy, then far be it from Medley to take that from him.

After dinner all the God Generals went to their respective rooms with Medley taking her place in Syncs. She often switched between Ariettas, Syncs, and Vans. Why? Because she could. When Arietta first joined, Medley really did feel bad for her and when Arietta first saw Medley, she was comforted in the belief that she was in the company of her own kind. So Medley stayed with her for a time. But of course, one would be nervous about leaving their pet alone. So, today, it was with Sync. As for staying with Van, well, sometimes their discussions of the future of their dreams would keep them up at night. So she would often fall asleep as Van preached his words against the Score. He might not seem it to anyone else, but the man liked to rant a lot.

“Why do you have to sleep with me tonight?” Sync asked, coming out of his bathroom after changing into a loose black shirt and long black pants. He kept the mask on.

“Because, Sync, I want to. Simple as that.”

Sync began to protest but stopped when he saw the glare Medley gave him that reminded him of what he was. “Fine. It’s of no consequence to me.”

Medley let her tail wave behind her and she grinned. “Good boy.” Sync just scoffed at the title, locking the door before removing his mask. Looking into those empty green eyes made Medley frown.

“Stop looking at me like that.” He demanded of her. She could easily have argued with him about taking that tone with her but she decided against it. Instead just sighing and turning away from him.

“Sync. Tell me. Why do you think birds fly?” Medley had been searching for an answer to that question for awhile. A question her counterpart asked her before she separated herself from him.

“Easy. Because they need to.”

Medley blinked twice, looked over her shoulder to stare at Sync as he sat on the bed, and frowned. “Is it really that simple?”

“That’s all we’re here for. To be used when we’re needed.” Medley tensed at that. That sort of thinking was her fault, wasn’t it? Still, he wasn’t wrong. As badly as she didn’t want to accept it. “Birds are needed by the world. To rid it of their prey. So they fly to catch what the world no longer needs.”

“Don’t worry, Sync. I need you.” she smiled at him as he huffed.

“Of course. You and Van both need my Daathic Fonic Artes.” Medley nodded and jumped onto the bed as Sync laid down, curling up next to his feet and resting her head on her paws. As long as she needed Sync, he would have purpose, and that’s all she wanted for him. So she would make sure to continue to need him.


	2. Replicas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Medley is asked a favor from Van. She gives a sigh before deciding to follow for now, waiting for her chance to take the lead.

“Are you sure about this?” Medley asked as she watched Van prepare to leave. She sat at the edge of the dock in Baticul. She had taken a habit of moving away from Daath to Baticul for short periods of time with Van. Though every now and then Van would give her a message to send to the God-Generals and vice-versa as she was faster than the mail.

“Yes.” He responded. Plain and simple. Medley liked that about him.

“If I didn’t know any better, Van, I’d say you care for the boy.”

“Perhaps I do.”

There was a pause between them before Medley sighed and stood up. “Alright. Whatever you ask. I’ll search for Luke and reveal myself to him.”

“You’ll need this.” he handed her a bracelet. She looked to it with curiosity. “Tell Luke and any others that find you that it’s a Sorcerer's Ring. A Capacity Core that lets monsters speak.”

She smirked and narrowed her eyes in his direction. “Oh, so now even you call me a monster? I’m hurt, truly.” Van did not laugh. He was too serious to laugh. All the same, Medley found the game of attempting such a feat fun. “Alright, alright. Enough games. You said Guy was walking on foot across Rotelro Bridge? And you’ll be traveling through Kaitzur? So what do you wish of me?”

“The skys. Luke and Mysterica were blasted into the sky from the hyperresonance. See if you can follow the trail of fonons.”

“Very well. Let me travel with you on the ship. I’ll hide from others and fly at night when no one else can see my wings so - “

“No.” He was stern. Medley glared. He dared to take such a tone with her? Did he forget who she was? WHAT she was? “You will search the skies immediately. There are many monsters yet to be recorded, so while it would cause temporary alarm, the fear would turn to gossip and slowly the words of your abilities will dissipate.”

Medley relaxed and sighed. She held her right paw out to let the Sorcerer’s Ring be placed around it and then let her wings grow. “That’s fine by me. But don’t press your luck with me, boy, let’s not forget who you have as a partner here.” and with that, she was off. She heard the shocked cries of the city-folk around her but, as per Van’s suggestion, she let it go and continued to fly. She could sense the fonons that guided her towards her destination. It was faint and she got lost a few times along the way but she eventually found herself in Malkuth.

~!~

Medley let out a yelp as she ran from a boar. The monster was chasing her relentlessly. Medley might consider herself a Goddess-in-training but she wasn’t some all-powerful being. Not yet, at least. She was just about to fly off when she heard a song come from behind her. She looked over her shoulder to find the monster laying there. Dead. Cut in half to be exact. She grimaced at the smell before looking to find her ‘heroes’.

Just as she was about to open her mouth in thanks, the boy who saved Medley swung his sword at her. As she jumped back and flew above her two saviors, she noticed something important. A crucial detail in this interaction. “Oh hey. You’re -”

“Whoa! What’s that monster? It grew wings!”

“Floofy.”

“What?”

“I… I thought it’d be cute.”

Medley glared. She did not appreciate being named like that. Van was right in that most people would see her as a new, undiscovered, monster but it was still upsetting to be called something so… demeaning. “Listen here, my name is “Medley” and you’d be good to remember that!” They both froze and stared at her. Good. She had their attention. “Now, settle down, put your weapons away, and let me explain myself.”

“That monster is talking!” The long-haired redhead yelled out. This wasn’t her first time meeting him, sure, but it had been seven years. The last time she saw the ‘teenager’ he was a newborn. So she simply rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, good job genius.”

The one she recognized as Tear spoke up as well, though in a much more calm fashion. She didn’t like that. Luke’s reaction was better than no reaction at all. At least his was fun to tease in response. Tear, well, she reminded her too much of Van. “How are you speaking our language?”

She hummed thoughtfully and landed on a nearby rock, staring at them from above. “How indeed. Oh, right!” she held her right paw out into the open to make it obvious. “It’s a Sorcerer's Ring. It helps me to speak with humans. It was given to me by - um - well, I got it a long time ago.” Nice job, Medley. Five minutes into meeting them and you’ve already almost revealed Van’s secrets.

Tear looked hesitant to believe her. Fair enough. Medley hesitated in saying it. “A long time ago?”

“Whatever! I just want to get home!” Luke cried out. Medley’s first thought of the older version of the boy was simply Ah. He’s a brat.

Medley grinned at them and hopped down from the rock, hiding her wings. “If you wish for it, I can lead you to the nearest town. So long as you give me some food and protection, I’ll help you.”

Tear brought a hand to her chin in thought. “I don’t believe that sounds like a bad idea. Are you really that desperate for food?”

Medley did her best to put on a desperate face. “Yeah. I’m not a good hunter, as you can probably see. I’m more of a scavenger and you can imagine food is hard to come by with that process.”

Luke crossed his arms and huffed. “Fine. Lead us to town and we’ll feed you when we get there.”

Before letting Tear interject with her obvious suspicions on the deal made, Medley nodded her head. “Great! Call me Medley, your new partner~!”

Tear sighed as she let her worries drop, but Luke had a comment of his own to make. “Wait, your name’s Medley?”

“Yeah? What of it? I said that before, didn’t I?”

“It’s just…” Luke scratched his head in confusion, looking as though he were about to get a headache. “I recognize that name somewhere.”

Medley tensed. He remembers me? But how? “Ah - I’m sure it’s your imagination. Or maybe a fine young woman wanted to earn your favor but she wasn’t quite fine enough for you to remember anything but her name.”

He grimaced and then glared. “No way.” and to that response, the disguised kitox simply laughed.

Making it to a coachman was not something Medley expected. They tried to send her away because of the added price of bringing a “pet” along but she calmly reminded them of their deal and when the coachman said the jewel Tear parted with was fine enough for all three, they let her tag along without any protests from Luke or Tear.

So, finding a comfortable spot in Tear’s lap, Medley decided to rest for the rest of the trip.

~!~

When Rotelro bridge was destroyed behind them, Medley immediately began to worry about the one Van called “Guy”. Would he have made it? What would he do if he only brought enough supplies to handle going across the bridge and had planned to stop at the town they were headed to? Would he have to go all the way back?

Pulling herself away from the window, she was shocked to hear they were headed to Grand Chokmah. Dammit! She thought to herself. I should have been paying more attention. She began to pace between Luke and Tears laps as she found herself getting lost in thought. How was she supposed to explain this to Van? ‘Oh, I found them in Tataroo valley and told them I would take them to the nearest town thinking I could lead them in the right direction but - hah - a coachman started taking us to the capital of Malkuth. My bad.’ She huffed. Yeah right. Like he would accept that excuse.

“Hey - cut that out!” Medley was brought back down to Auldrant when Luke shoved her onto the ground off of his lap.

Tear glared at the young boy. “Luke, that’s horrible! Apologize to Medley!”

“No way!” He responded with his own glare. “I never said she could sit in my lap. Look! Now her disgusting fur is all over me!”

Disgusting?! It took everything in Medley’s power to not growl at him. Instead she forced a smile and jumped up to sit between them. “It’s okay, Tear. I should’ve asked permission before walking all over him.” That’s right. Play nice. This is Van’s pride and joy, after all.

~!~

Engeve was supposed to be an easy stop but of course Luke had to make trouble out of it. Stealing an apple while the town was on edge of mass food thievery going on? Sure, he didn’t know about that tension, and neither did she nor Tear, but still… stealing an apple? Really? Was he that sheltered? What had Van been raising?

She sighed and let it go for now. Following the crowd as they dragged him to, what she assumed was the mayor’s house, Medley just continued to side glance the humans. When one looked to her with curiosity she just smiled and waved her tail. She kept her wings hidden. No need to make the townspeople jumpier than they already were.

When they entered, Medley noticed a high ranking officer in the room. Her suspicions were proven true when the one called Rose said “We have an important guest from the military here!” She felt she’d seen him in Daath before but she supposed that was just her imagination. Still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she should know him.

After he spoke and cleared up that the idiot and his escort were not of the Dark Wings, the military man turned to Medley. “Is that a monster companion with you?”

Medley just sat down and yawned.

“She’s no monster.” Luke spoke suddenly. Medley turned to him with wide eyes. What? What?? “She’s helping Tear and I get to Baticul.” Medley’s gaze softened. She knew what the sentiment was that Luke was trying to convey yet hide at the same time. And it warmed her heart ever so slightly. She sighed and stood once more to look at Jade with a smirk.

“Name’s Medley.” She made a show of a mock bow. “At your service, Colonel~” 

“Speaking a human language? Yes, clearly you are no monster. And you recognize my rank, I’m assuming by my uniform.”

“Yes sir.” She straightened up, sat down, and held up her right paw. “It’s a Sorcerer’s Ring. It helps me to communicate.”

“Weren’t Cheagles believed to be the only ones with such technology?” Medley froze. She wasn’t prepared for that question. Van didn’t tell her that Sorcerer’s Rings were so rare only one was even believed to be in existence. So she stalled.

“Well, that’s…”

“Speaking of Cheagles.” Medley turned towards the new voice. Her eyes grew wide when she saw who was at the door. The fifth one? “I believe they’re the ones at fault for raiding the storehouse.” As they discussed their personal business, Medley felt her breathing become faster. What is he doing here? Wasn’t he missing? Regardless of all the questions she had, she found it important to not reveal herself. She wasn’t even supposed to exist let alone work under Van as a secret God-General of sorts. Medley knew she needed to get out before she let on more than she needed to. The curious glance from the Colonel was not lost on her, so she knew she already revealed too much in her reaction at seeing Ion. So she left the building and worked to steady her breathing.

Wandering the town, she took note of another familiar face. One that most likely never noticed her but that Medley knew. Anise Tatlin. Fon Master Guardian. What? What was a Fon Master Guardian doing here? Sure, Ion was here but Ion was supposedly missing. If a Fon Master Guardian was here, then didn’t that mean it was official Daath business? Anise began to walk past Medley but froze and turned to her. “Hey I know you. You’re that weird monster that likes to hang around Daath.”

Medley froze. This one was far more observant than she anticipated. Anise knelt down and began to pet Medley on the head, scratching behind her ears. Yes, it felt good, no, Medley didn’t like it. Anise continued speaking, though, and Medley’s curiosity got the better of her so she decided not to lash out. For now. “I wonder how you made it all the way out here. Or maybe, oh, you’re not the same one, are you? Still, if you were a rare monster, shouldn’t you be with a group of your kind? Or are you like birds? Lonely creatures.”

Medley sighed and decided to give up the fact that she could speak when she saw Luke and Tear leaving Rose’s house. “No, I’m the same one. Some things happened and I got lost. The Fon Master is inside there.”

Anise’s eyes grew wide and she stopped petting Medley. “Whoa! You talked!”

“Yes yes, I know it’s a shock. It’s the power of the Sorcerer’s Ring.” Medley mumbled to herself. “Getting tired of explaining that…”

Anise jumped up to stand upright again and saluted to Medley. “Alright! Thanks for telling me about Ion! We can help you get to Daath, you know.” Medley shook her head.

“I already made a deal.”

Just then, Tear and Luke walked up with Luke speaking first. “Medley, why’d you run off like that?”

Medley smiled nervously. “Ah - hah - claustrophobic?”

Luke made a face. “What does that even mean?”

Tear sighed and answered him. “It means she’s afraid of tight places and groups of people.” Medley simply nodded in affirmation and chose to ignore it when Luke huffed and mumbled a quiet ‘that’s stupid’.

Anise smiled at the two of them before waving. “Well, I hope you get back home safely, Medley, I’d love to ask about that Sorcerer’s Ring sometime so make sure you make it back to Daath.” she winked before running off to Ion. “Master Ion~!”

Tear looked to Medley with a suspicious frown. “‘Back home’? Is Daath your home, Medley?”

Luke’s eyes grew wide and he made fists with his hands. “Hey! You’re right! What was that about and what was with that Ion kid being here?!”

Medley felt her mouth go dry and turned away in an attempt to hide her nervous expression. “It’s nothing. I mean, yeah I’m from Daath and I got lost but that’s besides the point. My issues aren’t yours. And as for Ion, I don’t know. It’s not like I’m with the powers that be.”

Tear nodded, a neutral expression coating her face. Medley looked over her shoulder in an attempt to read them better. Tears blank face made her nervous but Lukes honest frustration was a lot nicer to see. He really was easy to understand. She smiled and stood up, turning completely to face them. “Alright. So, we rest for the night here and then head out?”

“Not quite.” Luke huffed, crossing his arms. “I’m gonna catch a Cheagle.” Medley stared with wide eyes, confused beyond belief. Being unable to speak at the moment from the sheer shock, she was grateful to hear Tear ask the important question.

With hands on her hips she glared at Luke. “Luke don’t be ridiculous. Cheagles are wild animals, and monsters to top it off. There’s no way you could just walk to their nest and catch one.”

“Shut up!” Luke responded. “I’ve made up my mind! I’m not gonna let this village get on to me for being some sort of thief and then not catch the ones that actually did it!” Not following the logic, Medley just stared. But hey, if it’s what Luke wanted to do, then who was she to stop him?

Technically his mother. She grimaced at the stray thought that entered her head. Yeah that wasn’t a fun picture. Sure, it made perfect sense but… no, not going to think of it. She shook her head and then sighed. “Alright, Luke.” She began to walk towards the Inn. “Have it your way but first, we sleep.”

Luke grinned at getting what he wanted and Tear, much like Medley, just sighed and gave up the attempt to argue him out of it.

~!~

Traveling to the Cheagle Woods was very difficult with all the flying monsters coming after them. The bigger ones attempted to pick Medley up, but on more than one occasion when that occurred, Luke saved her life and for that she was grateful. “Can’t you fight with those claws and teeth of yours?” he asked her once they made it to the entrance of the forest.

“Not exactly. These are just for eating, I’m afraid.”

“Then what’s the point of them?”

Medley smirked and narrowed her eyes towards him. “What’s the point of you having teeth if not just to eat?”

He huffed and began walking over a tree root. “Whatever.”

Feeling like the winner of that conversation, Medley hopped over said tree root and started to follow Luke obediently. That is, until she heard something strange. She turned towards the sound. “That sounds like…” she began to run in that direction and running just a few feet around a large tree revealed the fifth Ion surrounded by ligers. “Oh no.” her face paled. This was not good. If Ion died in front of her, Medley would NEVER hear the end of it from Mohs and Van. Especially Mohs. Wait would they end up using Sync, then? She growled at the thought. No. Sync was hers. Wait. She thought to herself. Why am I so possessive of him all of a sudden?

Getting lost in her thought, Medley almost missed the Daathic Fonic Arte that Ion used to save his life. Letting out a relieved sigh, Medley stepped forward at a normal pace while Tear walked more briskly and Luke ran towards him. Luke, being the first to reach Ion, spoke first. “Whoa, are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m… I’m fine. Just used too strong of a Daathic Fonic Arte.” Ion responded. Luke put his hands on his hips.

“Well don’t do that again! Look, I’ll take care of the fighting so stay close to me.” Once again, Medley had to blink in confusion at Luke’s antics. That was more thoughtful than she expected.

It wasn’t lost on Ion and Tear, either. Ion just smiled at Luke. “Thank you. What’s your name?”

“I’m Luke.”

“Luke. That’s a nice name. It means “Light of the Sacred Flame” in Ancient Ispanian.” Luke blushed and scratched his cheek.

“Yeah… well…”

Tear stepped forward then and smiled, it was a genuine smile unlike Vans devilish ones. “I’m Tear. Tear Grants.”

“Tear?” Ion responded. “You’re Vans sister, aren’t you?”

Luke looked more shocked than Medley was prepared for. “What?!” He yelled “His sister?! Then what was with all that stuff about trying to kill him?!”

Now it was Medley’s turn to look shocked. That, Van didn’t tell her. “Wait, you tried to kill your brother?”

Tear looked away. “Yes, well.. It relates to my homeland. I’m sorry.”

Before Luke could let out another complaint, one Medley wasn’t sure if she would hold him back from, Ion turned to Medley with a smile. “You’re the monster that was at Rose’s house, aren’t you? The one who spoke to the Colonel?” Medley, nervous as she was talking to the fifth Ion, simply nodded and turned her gaze away.

“Yeah… something like that.” Ion looked a little hurt, but mostly confused. Don’t look at me like that. You look too much like Sync when he was first born when you do that.

“Is something wrong? Did I do something to offend you? Oh - you must not like being called a monster. I’m sorry.” Ion reached out to pet Medley and against her better judgement, she let him. His hand was warm. Much warmer than Syncs. Gah - stop comparing them you fool! Even if it is really easy…

“Yeah. Sorry. I’m just me. Not a monster, not a cat, not a fox, a creature of my own.”

Luke finally spoke up after being quiet for longer than usual, his arms crossed. “Her name’s Medley.” Medley felt Ions hand freeze at the mention of her name. She looked up at him to try and read his expression, of which she saw confusion and shock. Shock at the name and confusion at feeling shocked, perhaps? No matter. For now, Medley just prayed Ion didn’t remember her the way Luke almost did. Before Medley could speak in response, Ion’s expression turned back to a soft smile.

“That’s a nice name, too. I like it. A collection of songs put together into one melody, right? I think it suits you.”

“Yeah.” Medley smiled. It was the first time someone said they liked her name. Everyone either tried to name her something else, or simply scoffed at the idea. But not this Ion. No, he understood the meaning. Well, on the simple level that he understood her, he understood it. Medley blushed and shook her head when she realized she was staring. What was she doing? As she was about to question her feelings aloud, Luke called out and pointed to the right.

“Hey! Is that a cheagle?!” Medley looked up and followed Lukes finger to the monster. Sure enough, it was a cheagle. As it began to bounce off, Luke glared and made a fist with his hand. “That little - hey get back here!” and off he went. Off to chase it down.

Ion turned to Tear and smiled. “I won’t ask about you and Van.”

“Thank you.” she responded.

Medley shut her eyes and held her head up high. “While we’re requesting radio-silence, I’d like to ask that the origin of my Sorcerer’s Ring not be questioned.” She looked to Tear and Ion. Ion simply nodded and began to follow Luke but Tear looked conflicted at first before hesitantly nodding and then following Ion. So, Medley did what Medley’s do best, she followed for now, awaiting the opportunity to take the lead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Medley needs a sign that she carries everywhere that just reads 'It's the Sorcerer's Ring!" - a good friend of mine.
> 
> That's basically what's happened this chapter, eh?


	3. The Ambush

As they entered the concave of the tree, Medley was shocked by the amount of cheagles surrounding them. “This… really is their nest.” When Ion stepped forward and attempted to speak with them, Medley just rolled her eyes. “Come on, Fon Master, let me do it. These guys are important to Yulia, right? So they should listen to you. What do you want me to say?” Before Ion could answer, the cheagles parted onto either side of the tree and one stepped forward, holding a... 'oh no.'

“Are you of relation to Yulia Jue?”

Medley swallowed nervously and stepped back, attempting to hide her fake Sorcerers Ring. Only Van, Mohs, and the other God Generals knew that she could speak without one. What was she supposed to tell them if it came out that her ring was a fake?

“Yes. I am Ion. Fon Master of the Order of Lorelei. We’ve come to ask why you’re stealing food from the village of Engeve.”

While they had their conversation explaining away that their younger member burned the forest where the ligers nested, Medley tried to sneak away. She didn’t want to get caught.

Luke was the ever curious idiot, though, as he called out “Hey Medley, where are you going?” She froze before slowly turning her head with a nervous smile.

“Ahah… claustrophobic?” The elder cheagle stared Medley down. Hard. Medley swallowed nervously and turned ahead again, snaking down and attempting to crawl away from their eyes.

Ceasing in its staring, the elder cheagle spoke. “I thought this was the only Sorcerer’s Ring.”

Ion answered before Medley was forced to spill the beans or start another web of lies. “She got hers a long time ago. She doesn’t want to tell us where from, though. We’ve chosen to respect that decision.”

“I see” the elder cheagle continued.

Taking a deep breath, Medley decided to go through with the idea of feeling claustrophobic and stepped out of the tree. She stared at what little of the sky she could see through the leaves and wondered how her pet was doing. It’s not like she cared too much about him but he was still her responsibility. So of course she worried over him.

~!~

Sync had his arms crossed as he leaned against a wall. Van had come to see them in Daath a little earlier than expected. But when Van explained what happened to the replica Luke and where Medley had flown off to, he shut his eyes and smirked. For a bit more, he would be free from her glare. He felt slightly emptier than usual without her orders to make him feel useful, but Van had his own orders for them. And that kept Sync going at least a little longer.

“So you want us to kidnap the Fon Master?” Sync said, feeling absolutely nothing over this fact.

“Yes.” Van responded. “You will find him on the Tartarus travelling from Engeve to Kaitzur, as per our informants report, and take him to the Sephiroth. His going missing is the perfect opportunity for this mission. Just know that if you are caught, it was not of my orders.”

“That way you can claim to reprimand us without any actual consequences.”

Van nodded in affirmation to what Sync said and, once again, Sync smirked. “Here.” Van handed Largo a box. A box that Sync recognized to be a fon-slot-seal. “For the Fon Master. Take care of everything. I have a foolish replica to look for.”

They all nodded and as Van left, Sync decided to shut his eyes and think things over. He truly felt nothing. Should he not care more about being so close to the one who succeeded? The one chosen over him? Possibly. Yet he didn’t. He felt no jealousy, no rage, nothing.

~!~

Medley wasn’t sure how she felt about the newest addition to their team. Mieu led the group towards the ligers nest and she was feeling very huffy about it. She could have worked fine as an interpreter if, you know, she actually spoke liger. She once spoke the language but it was too different from New Ispanian. Especially once they added Arietta, Medley lost touch of the liger language in favor of letting Arietta do all the translating for them. So here they were, stuck with another little kid. An even younger little kid.

“What’s up with you?” Luke asked as he turned over his shoulder to look at the one falling behind. Medley just huffed and sped up her pace without saying a word. Luke gave her a narrowed eyed grin. “Oh I get it. Jealous there’s another monster in the group? I think Tear likes Mieu better. Plus, he can actually do stuff. You just talk.”

“Luke, that’s terrible!” Tear said to Luke for the second time since they’ve started this journey. “Don’t put them against each other just because they’re both monsters.”

Ion decided then to chime in. “Well, Medley’s not technically a monster, remember? She’s just Medley.” Medley straightened up with pride. Ion was right. There was no competition because there were absolutely no similarities between Mieu and her. Besides, it really wasn’t that she was jealous. It was that she was tired of being surrounded by children.

“Mieu…” mieu said nervously, hovering over to hide behind Luke. “She’s right in there. The queen is right inside.”

Luke glared at Mieu and picked him up. “What’re you hiding behind me for, Thing? Go hide behind Medley if you’re gonna be so useless.” He threw the poor cheagle in her direction and then proceeded through the cave towards the liger queen. Medley ducked before Mieu could hit her and Ion caught him. Good on Ion. Cause Medley wasn’t gonna do it.

Negotiations with the liger queen went poorly, to put it nicely. Luke saved Mieu and Ion, though, so that was nice. Just as the queen was about to attack, Medley realized something and started to call out. “Wait!” just as she screamed, there was the sound of someone else yelling. “Indignation!” Feeling the powerful gust of wind that came from the attack on the liger queen, Medley rolled back straight into the legs of the one who cast the arte. She looked up to find… the colonel? Come to think of it, he was with Ion before, wasn’t he?

Medley straightened herself out, playing with her ears a little bit as she did such. As Luke and Tear had a conversation about the queens broken eggs, Medley looked up at the offending gentleman. “You didn’t have to kill her.”

“Oh? Was that your mother, young monster?” The colonel responded.

Medley scoffed. “Hardly. And I’m no monster. I’m just Medley.”

“Yes of course. Now, Ion, you’ve caused quite a bit of trouble here. Had I’d not been here -”

Ion interrupted him. “I’m sorry, Jade. I acted without thinking far enough ahead of the possible consequences.”

“And what’s worse, you’ve involved civilians.”

Luke called out from his place resting on the ground. “Hey old man, the guy’s apologizing. Can’t you let it go?”

Medley blinked in surprise. She was expecting Luke to lash out and be annoyed at Ion. Not defend him. Maybe Van did a better job at helping to raise this kid than she initially thought.

Gathering themselves in order, the group went back to the cheagle nest. On their way, they had run into Anise who spoke with the colonel about something or other that even Medley couldn't hear and as quickly as she arrived she was gone.

They spoke with the tribe leader and Mieu officially joined the group as Luke’s servant. Pet was more like it, Medley thought. She rolled her eyes at the scene and was the first to head out of the forest. She paused when she noticed something that was off, though.

Luke stared with blissful innocence at how Medley stopped suddenly. “What wrong, Medley?”

“Hey. So um. Where are all the monsters?” Medley responded. She looked over at Luke, at Tear, at Mieu and then… the colonel. Her eyes grew wide in understanding. She released her wings and flew away. As she was flying she took note that Jade and Anise had surrounded Luke, Tear and Mieu with their group of Malkuth soldiers.

Medley swallowed nervously. What was she supposed to do now? She was supposed to help Luke get home, wasn't she? Ah hell - she wouldn't be able to do that if she got kidnapped and questioned. One wrong move and she would spill her guts like an open can of beans. The longer she stayed, the longer she ran the risk of getting shot at. So she sighed and flew away for now.

As she was flying she came across some familiar faces traveling the Rugnica Plains. She grinned and landed in front of her group. “Now what are you lot doing outside of Daath?”

Sync frowned and crossed his arms, leaning to one side. “We could ask you the same thing.”

“Don't worry about me. Van asked me to look for Luke and I found him but - hey I know. You lot can help me free him!”

Legretta raised an eyebrow and straightened up. “Free him? Luke, you mean? From what?”

Medley sighed. “That boy is hopeless. He insisted on a side mission in the Cheagle Woods and got himself captured by a Colonel of the Malkuth military. Oh, and Ion’s with them. Probably being held against his will, as well.”

They all looked to each other before Asch stepped forward. “We have orders from Van to capture Ion and take him to the Sephiroth.” Medley frowned. That didn't sound right. Why would they need the Sephiroth opened? How was that supposed to complete either of their goals?

She shook her head to bring herself back down to reality. “Right. Follow me and I'll take you to where the Tartarus is.” She wasted no time in leading them and they wasted no time in following her.

As they walked they discussed a plan. Medley was the one to catch them up to speed on what happened. “So we’re using Ariettas friends to attack the Tartarus? The Fon Master Guardian, Anise, was there, too, so we should be careful.”

“Yes, we know.” Asch responded. Medley stared at him with confusion before he continued. “Anise is the one who told Mohs where Ion was.”

‘Ah’. She thought to herself. ‘A traitor’. She hummed in thought before sitting down where they could see the Tartarus in the distance. “Right. So Arietta should be back any moment with the other monsters. Until then, can someone explain to me what opening the Sephiroth is going to do?”

Sync smirked. “If Van didn’t tell you then you’re not supposed to know.”

Medley glared at him. “Watch it, boy, or I’ll tell everyone your little secret.” She was, of course, referring to his status of being Medley’s pet. She kept that under wraps for his sake and no other reason. If he pushed things with her too far, she might not have the grace to hold her tongue anymore.

Legretta answered just as Sync looked away. “If he hasn’t told you, what would cause you to assume he would tell us?” Oh, Medley knew that answer. It was a question that she was supposed to answer with ‘I guess he wouldn’t’. It would be an assumption on her part and it would let the God Generals off the hook from telling her the truth of what they knew. She knew that they were withholding information from her.

And she didn’t like that one bit.

She was about to respond her distaste in such a tactic when Arietta arrived riding her liger brother. For now, Medley would let it go. “Alright, listen up. As far as these people are concerned, I’m on their side and I’m going to stay that way.” Medley began, hoping to remind everyone of her role in the group. Her role of being the leader in Vans absence. “So I’m going to make it look like I’m trying to save them but you should have no issue in throwing me back. I won’t make this easy on you all but if you hurt me for real, you will pay the price. Understood?”

It was now Dists turn to speak up. “Why would we agree to letting you mingle with the enemy?”

Medley rolled her eyes. Dist always did hate her. Not the same way Sync did. No, Sync hated everybody in his own special way of not caring. Dist, on the other hand, hated Medley specifically because he didn’t like that Van said he needed her to create replicas. For now, though, Medley and Dist had silently agreed to play nice. So she answered him. “Because Van requested I look after Luke and, quite frankly, I’m growing kind of fond of him. So I’ll continue watching over him until he’s safe at home. Or at least until he’s safe under Van’s watchful eye.” Asch visibly twitched and scowled as Medley spoke of the replica. Her gaze softened towards him and when he saw that, he turned away. So she sighed in response to the cold shoulder. She really did feel bad for him. But still, it would all come around and everyone will rejoice in the new world she and Van will create. “Plus,” she continued “if this is going anywhere interesting, like I think it is, we’ll need a spy on the inside.”

Dist begrudgingly crossed his arms and agreed to the plan, Asch clicked his tongue against his teeth before nodding in agreement, Largo stood silently and nodded his head, Legretta did the same, Arietta tensed slightly before nodding in understanding and Sync, well, Sync just stood there and smirked. Which was typical of him. He would claim to have no feelings towards anything and he was probably right, so it only made sense that he would just stand in silence.

Medley nodded her head and smiled at all of them with her eyes narrowed. “Good. Then let’s go.”

~!~

Medley flew above the Tartarus as chaos ensued. She scanned the area for the replica. She couldn’t care less what happened to the colonel or the one named Tear. The replica Luke was the only one she cared about in this case. Finally finding him, Medley lowered herself next to him and put her wings away. If one of the God Generals showed up to ‘capture’ her, she wanted an excuse to not having flown away. “Hey, Luke.” she called out with her best smile. “I was wondering where you - huh?” she was officially confused. Luke was hunched over, hands on his head and shaking.

Medley walked up next to him to try to get a better look at his face and when all she saw was horror and all she heard was ‘I killed him’ she looked off to the side. There was a dead Oracle Knight. One of the ones they took with them to capture Ion. Her ears fell in understanding before she turned back to Luke. “Luke, I - “ she was interrupted by Tear and the colonel showing themselves from the room in front of them. She huffed at that. She really was only interested in Luke.

“What happened?” Tear said. She then looked to Medley with wide eyes. “Medley?! I thought you flew off!” Medley tried her best to just smile instead of rolling her eyes.

“I panicked.” she stated plainly. “But I’m here now. I made a deal to help you both get home, remember? Besides, I like you both. I couldn’t just abandon you entirely.” She turned back to Luke and her gaze softened. She really did feel for him. She didn’t like killing, either. “I’m not sure what’s going on but Luke is sort of freaking out about killing someone right now so -”

She was interrupted again. This time by a familiar voice. “If you’re too scared to fight then throw away your sword!” Asch. Medley growled as an arte was used to knock out the three idiots that were now Medley’s companions. She jumped back just in time for one not to hit her and she glared at the offending red-head. “Hey!” she yelled out. “Watch it - you could’ve killed me!”

“Might’ve been better that way.” Asch responded. He thought he was being quiet but Medley’s ears did more than just decorate her face. She twitched and narrowed her eyes further.

“Jerk.” was her only response. Asch made a move towards the replica and Medley simply jumped between them. “Hey Asch, don’t forget your orders. Retrieve the Fon Master. I’ll stay with them and keep an eye on what they do. Remember, this one is under mine and Vans protection.”

“Fine.” Asch put his sword away. “Put them in a brig.”

Medley smiled and waved her tail behind her as oracle knights picked up the three stupid ones. “Good boy.” she said and, as always, Asch scowled. She then followed the oracle knights to the brig and sat waiting for Luke, Tear and Jade to wake up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was difficult to do. It was all fun and games until Medley separated from the main party. Hopefully it's not TOO obvious that I struggled from the on.

**Author's Note:**

> This was a lot of fun to write. I enjoyed getting into the dark reality that is the creation of replicas and yes I did add a reference to Berseria in there and yes you're supposed to laugh if you recognize it. But it really does fit the story I'm trying to tell between these two so hopefully it wasn't TOO distracting.


End file.
